Sticky Boat Bottoms

Last weekend, after a hiatus of five months we saw Relax Lah again. This was not the first time we left Relax Lah at the mercy of the elements in Tioman during the monsson season. Its the second. Things happen when you leave a boat. Parts come off, batteries go flat, decks get mouldy, engines stall, metals get rusty, plastics and wood get brittle and peel offs. A glance at the rudder and a quick dip underneath the boat showed a layer of shells and barnacles that need to be scrapped off. In addition to reducing the drag on the boat speed caused by them, it also avoids permanent damage on the body of the boat.

It has been two years that I moved the boat from Sebana Cove to Tioman. The difference between these two places is Sebana Cove is located upstream of the freshwater River Sebina whereas Tioman sits in the middle of the South China Seas. Its common knowledge that barnacles natural habitat is in saltwater and have a snowball's chance in hell to survive in fresh water.

Rahman got the ball rolling by clearing the rudder and the sides just beneath the waterline. Armed with a life vest and scraper, it took him a good part of Saturday afternoon to clear these areas of barnacles and shells.

Myself, I was trying to clear areas underneath the hull and the keel. Took my vest off and did a free dive down to have a look. The hull was relatively clear of growth, compared to to the rudder. But the keel was almost covered, especially the posterior surface. In order to chip away at the growth, I had to take a deep breath, jump in, take a few stabs at either at scraping or hammering at the buildup and come up to the surface for air. All these happened in a space of one and a half minutes. After doing this for what seems like an eternity and with little to show for it, I decided that this wasn't going to work.

Next day, I started afresh by renting a set of scuba diving equipment. That gave me a good hour underwater to complete the task (almost).

So here it is, a low down on barnacles and shells found in Malaysia and underneath Relax Lah!

Basically, there are three organisms that are found on hard surfaces. These are often mistaken for each other although they have distinct characteristics.


Barnacles
Teritip (Malay)

Barnacles don't move once they settle down as a tiny larvae on their chosen surface.
There is a hole at the top of the hard shell.
At low tide, the hole at the top of the shell is tightly closed by a pair of plates to reduce water loss






Limpets
Berangas (Malay)

Limpets can move around on their broad foot.
Some limpets have holes at the top of the hard shell, others do not. The hole is not closed by plates.
At low tide, they usually tightly clamp down against the surface and are difficult to dislodge.





Oysters
Tiram (Malay)

Oysters don't move once they settle down as a tiny larvae on their chosen surface.
Oysters have a two-part shell (i.e., two valves) like other clams. One valve is stuck to the rock. There is a gap between the valves.
At low tide, the valves are tightly shut to reduce water loss.